Sacrifice
by Indigo Skye
Summary: You, a young girl of 7 years old, are chosen to be a sacrifice to the mountain god. But a certain lad won't let it happen... Russia x Reader. Based on Hell Girl.


"Ah... a little butterfly..." You picked up the fuzzy insect with large, brown wings. It lay still and cold in your small palm.

"It's not dead..." you whispered, smiling. The butterfly fluttered its large wings and lifted off into the air. The moment was so peaceful, you never wanted it to end. All you wanted to do was watch that butterfly. Unexpectedly, a heavy object whizzed past your head.

"Ghost!" several voices chanted, the rocks being thrown occasionally. "You're a ghost!"

A boy in a thick beige coat and a baby-pink scarf stood infront of you, trying to stop you getting hit with the dirty rocks. Even if you and Ivan were six and a bit, he had quite a menacing aura. The kids backed away cautiously, whimpering before running back to the village. Ivan turned around and kneeled infront of you, smiling innocently.

"I know that _, my sunflower, is not a ghost." Ivan opened his eyes, his purple orbs looking at you enchantedly.

"Thank you, Ivan..." you said quietly, twiddling your fingers. Ivan and you had been friends since birth, and you both lived in a small village where they believe a god brings them food and water. It was quite a cosy village, but some of the people that dwelled in the wooden houses were evil. They relied on the god for everything, and sacrificed a child of seven every year to make sure the gods help their crops grow. You were turning seven. Ivan was younger than you by a month, and you were chosen to be sacrificed.

"For the village's good harvest... we have to offer up to a mountain god a girl of exactly seven." an old man said in a small voice. "_ is seven. She will become the bride of the mountain god to protect the village. Get ready now..."

Your mother wasn't going to let you be sacrificed. You were her only child, her dear daughter. If anything were to happen to you, she would sink to grief.

"Why... Why _?" she screamed at the man, who had left the door. The ceremony was about to take place.

====== Timeskip~! ======

Bells rang all around. You were forced to wear a bundle of ribbons around your forehead to form a crown of some kind. A long dress, a plain kimono, was on your body. Ivan was watching, a look of despair on his face. Why do people believe that a godly being will bring them food? There's no proof... no proof...

"_. Enter the shrine." a deep voice boomed in your ears. A square building, no larger than an ordinary lounge, stood infront of you. The people around you stood in complete silence, not even a bell rang once. The heavy, thick doors opened.

"There's... there's no handles on the doors..." you said, your bottom lip quivering.

"Quickly now!" a hand came out of nowhere and grabbed your wrists. You were lifted off the ground.

"No... stop it!" you screamed, being thrown into the shrine.

"Shut the door!" the same man yelled to the others. You protested over and over, until the door slammed shut. You were only seven. All you could do was sound a heart-wrenching scream.

===== A few days later =====

"It's so cold! I'm so hungry... somebody..." You lay on the hard ground. An icy breeze lingered in the shrine. You so hoped that someone, anyone, would let you out and eat... but you were so weak...

You woke when a blinding beam of sunlight splashed against your eyelids. The door had been opened. Ivan stood there, panting heavily.

"_!" he yelled, practically falling on you, gripping you in a bearhug.

"I-Ivan...!" You managed to choke out. Your throat was unbelieveably dry, it hurt to talk.

"_... we can't get you out of here, or they will kill us both. You'll have to stay here, but I can bring food and water." You nodded eagerly at his words, though you wanted to run around on the grass and feel the wind on your face again.

"Ivan... am I... a sacrifice...?" You asked shakily. Ivan stared at you with pain in his eyes.

"_!" Ivan pulled you into a warm hug, stroking your hair soothingly. "It's all right... everything's going to be alright!"

However, the farmers were confused.

"The rice is still dry... Long rain, then bright sun... why... The mountain god, why aren't you helping us?" one asked, glancing at the plants that were yet to grow.

At Ivan's house, his father told him to have some food.

"You eat before me," he said. "Your body is weak. However, if we can't harvest rice, we will die." Ivan winced at those words. He would be the cause of the death of the village if he kept helping you, his dear sunflower.

The people of the village started to worry after several months had gone past. Women cried, as their babies wouldn't be able to make it through the winter. The harvest had gone wrong. Not enough food was growing. Men cursed the mountain god. It was all wrong.

===== 10 Years Later =====

"_, I brought you a change of clothes." Ivan said, opening the doors to the shrine. You and Ivan had been doing this routine secretly for 10 years, now you and Ivan are seventeen. He also held up a bright sunflower.

"Thank you, Ivan." you said, gently stroking the sunflower's petals. Everything was alright for you, but you still suffered the cold, lonely nights in that shrine. Your parents had sent Ivan in the first place to come and help you, so you know they loved you dearly. Ivan was dear to you, too. You must admit, you had a large crush on him. You weren't sure whether he liked you back, though. You were too shy to ask.

"I must say it!" you muttered. Ivan blinked.

"Hm?" he smiled like a child. You loved that about him. You loved his over-sized nose. You loved the fact that he always wore that scarf, screw the weather. You loved everything about him.

"It's nothing!" you said quickly, flapping your hands at him. "Erm... I-Ivan... I need to... tell you something..."

"What are you doing?" a deep voice roared. "It's because of you... You brought starvation on our village!" Ivan stared, eyes wide.

"_! Run!" he yelled at you. You stumbled backwards, but ran as fast as you could. You quickly turned your head around to see Ivan getting out his blood-encrusted pipe. The men shuddered. You just ran as fast as you could. It felt like you were flying, because you could hardly feel the cold earth beneath you.

"She's getting away!" one of the men nearby shouted. You yelped as a man's large hand came crashing down on the back of your head, making you fall to the ground.

"_...!" Ivan said, his voice cracking.

"Help me, Ivan!" you cried out in terror. The man tried to drag you, but you thrashed your legs in all possible directions.

"We have to do the ritual again!" the 'chief' yelled at the top of his lungs. No... You didn't want to go through that again... And Ivan wouldn't risk helping you again, because you're sure that he doesn't share the feelings for you... You doubt him...

==== Time skip ====

"STOP IT!" You tried to scream, but your voice was hoarse and you were blindfolded. They hadn't told you where you where going. They blindfolded you and threw you onto a wobbly box... No, it's not a box. It's a simple boat. Others were with you, blindfolded too. You soon realised that your hands were tied behind your back. When did that happen? What were they planning to do?

A spade whizzed down above you, aiming for your head. You shrieked, before falling down. You blood spilled. It was so dark.

What? What's happening? You felt yourself being lifted. Were they taking you back to Ivan? Hopefully. You felt the air rush against your body, before slamming against someone else. They groaned just loud enough to hear. You understood where you were, now. You were going to be buried alive.

"_!" That was Ivan's voice. The sweet guy that was scary when he was mad. The sweet guy that tried to help you survive. He called out your name loudly. His voice cracked. You could practically see his facial expression. Tears spilled down his cheeks, his mouth wide open to scream for your name.

"Ivan...?" Your throat burned. "Ivan!"

_Thud. Scratch. Thud. Scratch. Thud. Scratch. Thud. Scratch. Thud. _

You gasped. You knew exactly what was happening. They were scooping dirt into their shovels and threw it down onto your body. They intended to bury you alive, but Ivan protested. They wouldn't stop. They kept burying you and the others, in the dark earth.

The village was chanting. Their chants were haunting.

"Mountain god! Here is the girl who broke our laws... So please, save our village... Mountain god... Bury her alive!" they screamed. You heard the man's voice.

"Ivan! You too! If you don't, then the mountain god will not subside!" Ivan's eyes widened at the man's urgent request. He didn't want to bury you alive. Not at all! He wanted to live with you forever, protect you, stay by your side! The man forced a shovel into his hands and forced him to dig. Your blindfold slipped slightly. You saw Ivan digging you. Ivan couldn't control himself. He lost all his strength, suddenly. For the first time, since you'd met him... he was terrified.

"Ivan..." you whispered, barely audible. Ivan stared at your bleeding eyes, before running away. Just like that. He couldn't take anymore. He was done. You could hear him saying sorry as he ran. The men finished burying you and the others. In a short while, you had died. Ivan regreted it all.

Ivan built a temple to honour you. It was a large temple where lots of gravestones were lined up on the earth, where sunflowers grew. Ivan truely felt like you were the bravest person he had ever met. He never forgot you.


End file.
